Iraq's interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, has today announced that nine of the country's major militias have agreed to disband, with militia members either joining the country's legitimate security service or re-entering civilian life.

The agreement follows legislation that banned the militias, which have been battling coalition troops, Iraqi police and ordinary citizens since the end of Saddam Hussein's regime.

Mr Allawi said that the militias agreeing to be brought under state control included Kurdish peshmerga militias and the Badr Brigade of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a Shia party.

It is reported that the Mahdi Army, the militia loyal to Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, had not agreed to disband.

Mr Sadr's militia have been pulling out of the holy city of Najaf after reaching a truce with the US troops they have been battling for two months.

Mr Sadr's fighters have been allowed to keep their weapons under the deal, and the US has dropped its demand for the cleric's arrest.

Mr Allawi today hailed the agreement with the nine militias. He said: "All of these parties have accepted detailed plans, timetables and terms for the transition and reintegration of the armed groups under their authority, or have already disbanded their militias."

"As of now, all armed forces outside of state control, as provided by this order, are illegal. Those that have chosen violence and lawlessness over transition and reintegration will be dealt with harshly," he added.

"As a result of this achievement, the vast majority of such forces in Iraq - about 100,000 armed individuals - will enter either civilian life or one of the state security services," Mr Allawi said.